Los Angeles Zoo & Botanical Gardens Los Angeles Zoo News 2017

So I guess that answers the question of the elephant shrew’s status... that was one of the last in North America I believe. And one of only three red uakaris outside of South America has now passed as well.

Speaking of which, does anyone know how the uakaris ended up at LA in the first place?
 
Coelacanth18 said:
Speaking of which, does anyone know how the uakaris ended up at LA in the first place?
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Los Angeles Zoo - Red Uakari | ZooChat
One of the comments says the zoo was left with one old animal and they imported a pair from Brazil in the 1990s.

This link says they have been keeping them since the 1960s: Conservation

EDIT: I think eduardo-Brazil's comment about the 1990s was off. I found an application in 2000 from the LA Zoo to import a pair of the Uakaris, and the CITES Database confirms that a pair was imported to the USA from Brazil in 2002 (which was presumably the LA pair). Links below.

2000 Federal Register, 80450; Centralized Library: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Applicant: Los Angeles Zoo, Los Angeles, CA, PRT-306429
The applicant request a permit to import two (1.1) red uakari
(Cacajao calvus) from the Centro de Primatologia do Rio de Janeiro, San
Cristovao, Brazil for the purpose of enhancement of the survival of the
species through captive propagation.

CITES Trade Database
 
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African Grey said:
The next master plan meeting is on
Sat, December 2, 2017
10:00 AM – 11:00 AM PST

Los Angeles Zoo Master Plan Presentation
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I expect one or more of you guys will attend and report back here directly.

Of course the rest of us will probably be treated to the on-line video play back (at a later date).
But it is always more enjoyable to have personal perspectives on the occasion as well as nice to have or critical informations that might have been lost on the video registration.
 
Coelacanth18 said:
I just registered and plan on attending.

I hope that they haven't already done extensive collection planning; I worry that without input, they will prioritize ABC species too much at the expense of species in more need of space.
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Based on what they have already stated in earlier meetings, it seems likely that the plan will be focused on creating new exhibits for the major species already at the zoo that don't have modern exhibits (e.g., giraffes, lions, tigers, hippos, bears, etc.). A native California exhibit was mentioned in one of the meetings - obvious species for that exhibit would be condors, grizzlies, and mountain lions, none of which have been on exhibit at the zoo for many years. The LA Zoo has a long history of exhibiting rarely held species (e.g., red uakaris, mountain tapirs, Chinese giant salamanders), along with traditionally popular animals. It seems likely that will continue in some form.

Other master plan questions: Is there a plan for penguins (absent from the zoo for decades)? If San Diego Zoo starts a platypus colony and successfully propagates them, might they make their way up the 405 eventually (this is mostly a fantasy now, but had to wonder)? Will there be a Madagascar zone to build modern homes for the lemur species, fossa, etc.?
 
I'm hoping this is the case. I love the idea of expanding the zoo 1/3rd to build a canyon for native species. If they can put condors on display, all the better. It's a good zoo with a great team behind it and so many opportunities to grow.
 
jpc323 said:
A couple of interesting documents (maps) from the last masterplan meeting:

http://lazoomasterplan.com/wp-content/uploads/MP-Concept.pdf
http://lazoomasterplan.com/wp-content/uploads/MP-Thematic-Diagram.pdf
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Interesting stuff here. The "lodge" is interesting. I know others have mentioned a hotel being discussed in other meetings, and I think it's potentially a good idea. Do any zoos in America have actual hotels on-site (not counting things like camp-out tents)?

I also like that the planned California exhibit seems to be around the same size as the African area judging by the thematic diagram. Having native species as such a big spotlight isn't very common I do have to wonder what "waterplay" or "play and water" are. I hope they're not dedicating 2.3 acres purely to some kind of play area, considering that is larger than the entire Australia area according to the concept. Some kind of new children's zoo would be better. The marketplace idea is interesting.
 
Just got done watching the meeting livestream. Lots of great plans. I am really impressed by the plans for the California exhibit. I looked on the site right after and couldn’t find the PDFs for the plan so hopefully those go up soon because I want to study them more :)
 
Just got out of the meet and greet. Some quick notes:

First big change is redoing the entrance and parking, most likely


Replacing the big sign with LEDs, expanding the seal and sea lion area, and turning the stairs into a ramp way


A big exhibit with grizzlies at the entrance, leading to a canyon that opens the new California area


Proposed species include beavers, black bears, elk, and mountain lions. Zoo director had a joke about P22 pet doors.


He confirmed that there will be a California condor exhibit in this section.


Adding penguins near the flamingo habitat, place aviary over swan pond to allow for more water fowl


A new building there called Water about the issues that California faces, as well as additional species


Expanding Australia house, protect species from P22 in more controlled environments


Completely redesign Africa section. Large savannah type habitats for mixed species. Bringing rhino back. Enlarge space for the two male gorillas. Larger habitats for lions and hippos, as well as underwater viewing


Large thatch roof visitor center with giraffe feeding


Turn large hillside behind the current tram track into exhibits and an overnight camp


Parking lot used to be an airport, then housing for veterans after the war. Zoo used to be a golf course and many of the hills around the zoo were man made.


Expand the rainforest area with the sustainable village that was taken out of the last plan, as well as exhibits for animals that co-exist with villages in the rainforest


Tripling aviary in size to allow more species


Expanding the bird show to allow for other non-bird species and put shade over the bleachers


Envisioning a visitor center at condor west to offer tours of the condor conservation work


Underground rain water storage that will reduce water usage by 40%


Want to double capacity from 1.7 million a year to 3 million. Mostly expanding the parking lot and finding ways to change the four way stop sign at the entrance. Maybe a bridge, maybe a stop light to control flow. Maybe a parking garage near the Autry in the future if needed.


Turns out the zoo has a magnet school?


One thing they're looking at and aren't sure about is an aerial skyway from the gift shop and new fountain up to the African area


All of this will take a long time - won't even have the environmental impact analysis for another year, then have to figure out how to pay for it. Refered to it repeatedly as a 20 year plan.
 
jpc323, thank you for the summary, I'm most excited about a California condor exhibit!
 
Echobeast said:
l looked on the site right after and couldn’t find the PDFs for the plan so hopefully those go up soon because I want to study them more :)
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I took pictures of the site plan posters, focusing on each individual part of the zoo. I will post them on here later today for people to view.

@DavidBrown and I ran into each other in one of the poster rooms and talked quite a bit about the plan. The timeline is pretty far out as JPC said: the first new exhibit construction probably won’t break ground for 3-4 years.

Overall I am very impressed with the master plan. The master plan company guy that spoke in the workshop meetings last year focused mostly on event spaces and visitor amenities, which made myself (and apparently others) concerned that animal care, welfare, and conservation were not going to take center stage in the plan. That is clearly not the case and this plan is very much centered around better enclosures and holding spaces for the animals, while not sacrificing the diversity of their collection.
 
Here are the visual plans. They have been posted in the Los Angeles Media section.

Master Plan: Zoo Entrance

Master Plan: Zoo Entrance

Master Plan: Zoo Entrance Rendering

Master Plan: Zoo Entrance Rendering

Master Plan: Zoo

Master Plan: Zoo

  • Media owner Coelacanth18
  • Date added
  • Comments 18
Master Plan: California

Master Plan: California

Master Plan: Condor Canyon Rendering

Master Plan: Condor Canyon Rendering

Master Plan: Australia/Islands

Master Plan: Australia/Islands

Master Plan: Aquatics

Master Plan: Aquatics

Master Plan: Asia

Master Plan: Asia

Master Plan: Rainforest

Master Plan: Rainforest

Master Plan: Aviary and Bird Show

Master Plan: Aviary and Bird Show

Master Plan: Africa

Master Plan: Africa

 
Interesting plans, I'm shocked they don't envision keeping a single 'roundhouse'! Well, not really shocked...

The plan appears to avoid keeping any of the sufficient existing older yards so it is indeed an ambitious vision.

One curious inclusion is the California exhibit's area of 'vineyards' surrounding a hillside path. I would like to see the California condor exhibit brought to the front of the exhibit area, perhaps to that vineyard area, to be more visible along the main walkway; it would also make sense to move it to the area where the grizzly exhibit is proposed, as it would then be adjacent to the existing fine Children's Discovery Center with its extensive California condor interpretive exhibits.
 
@geomorph They stated explicitly in the previous meetings that they wanted to replace the roundhouses and old paddocks with newer exhibit models, and that is one of the primary reasons why they wanted a master plan to begin with.

I’m unsure about the vineyard as well, but I understand its relevance to discussing wildlife displacement in California. I told the general curator in the poster rooms that I would like to see more of their financial resources funnelled into animal care and exhibit design rather than extraneous theming stuff, and she seemed to agree with me so hopefully that will be the case. Theming can be great when done well, but most zoo exhibits nowadays spend way too much money on it...
 
Coelacanth18 said:
@geomorph They stated explicitly in the previous meetings that they wanted to replace the roundhouses and old paddocks with newer exhibit models, and that is one of the primary reasons why they wanted a master plan to begin with.

I’m unsure about the vineyard as well, but I understand its relevance to discussing wildlife displacement in California. I told the general curator in the poster rooms that I would like to see more of their financial resources funnelled into animal care and exhibit design rather than extraneous theming stuff, and she seemed to agree with me so hopefully that will be the case. Theming can be great when done well, but most zoo exhibits nowadays spend way too much money on it...
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I think 'theming' is strongest when it is integral to the place and the experience. It's best when it doesn't seem like theming and your mind doesn't register it as such. If there's a fruit salad of wood lodges and vineyards and wild west saloons, it'll be a waste. LA has plenty of 'themed' experiences and the zoo won't stand out if it follows suit. Also most of the imagery that has been presented is clearly Northern California and doesn't really constitute as a 'local' exhibit. It's almost like calling a Bayou exhibit a local species exhibit for a zoo in Kansas.
 
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